Jazz Odyssey: Chantil & the Dukes of Art Release New Album
When Chantil Dukart checks in with me on her latest artistic endeavor, I always look forward to experiencing another side of her. It’s honestly like peaking over the edge of a diamond. I know it’s gonna shine. I actually first met her as an educator hosting an Indigenous Artist Songwriting & Recording Workshop in partnership with Mobile Studio here in Denver. Though she still teaches from time to time, she is most often found sharing her musical prowess through performance, of her own compositions, and sometimes through special tributes like her annual homage to the great Nat King Cole.
Alongside her work as a leader, Chantil tours nationally and internationally with various bands in and outside of jazz, from The Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band to the Inuit-soul group Pamyua to her work with the bluegrass band Liver Down the River (as you’ll learn more about below) and more! Chantil Dukart is an award-winning contemporary jazz pianist/vocalist and a powerhouse crossover artist who leads with boundless creativity and a love for collaboration, and the world is all the better for it.
Chantil Dukart is currently on the heels of releasing her sophomore album, self-titled after her band, called Chantil & the Dukes of Art. It’s a celebration of her musical journey on the stages of this city and beyond with a focus on her live sound, “I do so much of my musical work live and a lot of it doesn't get captured, so it's like, you're finally putting it in a jar. It's like a genie in a jar.” It features songs that are integral to her live repertoire recorded as an ensemble, a style that calls back to the studio sessions of yore. The album drops May 1 and I recently had the opportunity to dig into it with her after her recent performance with Chantil & the Dukes of Art as part of our Jazz Odyssey Presents live music series April 15 at Two Moons Music Hall.
Lucky for the KUVO fam, a part of this conversation airs tonight on KUVO’s The Jazz Odyssey along with a special preview of three full songs from the soon-to-be-released Chantil & the Dukes of Art, so be sure to tune in at 10 p.m. MT tonight to KUVO JAZZ to hear it! And since we just caught a glimpse of the magic of this record at Two Moons, it only felt natural to start our conversation there:
Abi Clark: I'm so excited to see you now post-Jazz Odyssey Presents. You were one of our featured musicians at this event. How did it feel? What was it like for you?
Chantil Dukart: It was cool. I love doing partnerships with the radio station because they, or you guys, know how to bring people in. You guys know how to get people involved, people who are passionate about music. So, it's definitely a different listening experience and performing experience when you're playing for people who are jazz lovers.
Abi Clark: Yeah, locked in!
Chantil Dukart: And they're music aficionados. So, it's nice to have, and it's also a little intense to have an audience that's like locked in. You're like, ooh, they're listening!
Abi Clark: They're with you! You had a fantastic band too, Will Gaines and Khalil Brown. And really excitingly, you were giving us a taste of this new album, which is on the heels of releasing, Chantil & the Dukes of Art, which that's your band name. And that's been with you for some time. How did you come up with that really sick band name? It's one of my favorites in our community.
Chantil Dukart: So, I actually came up with it when I was in college. I had a marketing class and we had to throw together a project and I was like, let me just like flesh out my band strategy. And my teacher actually didn't like the name. And I was like, well, too bad. I'm using it!
Abi Clark: You had the gut though, because it's an amazing play off your last name.
Chantil Dukart: Exactly!
Abi Clark: And you have one other album out, but this (release) has been really highly anticipated. And so, tell me about this record in general. Like how did you get to the point? Are these songs (that) have been swimming in your brain for some time?
Chantil Dukart: Some of them are older songs that I've written. And I kind of just picked a selection of just what I consider to be my best songs. And there's a reggae tune, there's a gospel tune, there's a New Orleans, like almost boogaloo tune. There's a couple ballads. There's a Bill Withers-esque tune. So it's a whole, very versatile set of music. And I came up with the concept, Chantil & the Dukes of Art, because I wanted a project that would represent the live feel of what it feels like to see my band live. And so, when we recorded this, we actually recorded it at Tom Amend's studio. He's the organ player that you'll hear on the tracks. And it was one of the most chill recording sessions I've ever had. We were like, I marinated chicken! We were barbecuing in the back on the breaks and it was so relaxed. And we had the whole rhythm section in the room playing together. And I've never been able to do that. That's kind of how they used to cut records.
Abi Clark: That's old school!
Chantil Dukart: And so it's the first record I've done where everybody was in the room at the same time. We're throwing a football on the breaks. And it was just like the vibe. And I think that comes through on the record. And that's why I'm very excited and proud, proud to share it with everyone.
Abi Clark: I love it. Literally a party in the making - that's so fun. Shout out to the rest of the band because you got some great players on there.
Chantil Dukart: So on the record, we've got Tom Amend. He played organ bass clarinet. I had Eric Wheeler from New York on the upright bass. He's incredibly talented. I mean, he's toured with Kenny Garrett, Jazzmeia Horn - He's a big dog. And I was very privileged to be able to have him on the record. Isaac Teel on the drums. He's also from New York. We're lucky to have him in Colorado now. But he has a very funny introduction on the album. So make sure you check the first track on the record is hilarious.
Abi Clark: Was that just like studio banter or?
Chantil Dukart: You'll hear it, but he went on this little.. he has a little monologue at the beginning and it's out of control. It's just hilarious. It's funny. It's soulful. And it just like sets off the tone of the whole record. Who else is on there? Nate Miller on saxophone and a horn. And who else? Aaron Daniels, I have to give a big shout out. He's an incredible pianist, producer, and me and him have been working very closely on the mixing and mastering and finalizing everything. So, he came in clutch at the end and he's kind of like the invisible fifth partner of the band. You know, because he actually, I've never let anybody play piano on any of my records before, but he added some piano on Show Me What Love Is. And I was just like so lucky that He blessed my track with his dopeness. You know what I mean?
Abi Clark: Well, we're going to start with the track that features a little bit of his piano playing alongside yours. And I love the way it comes in with a bang. Let me just let you hear it. So here's Chantil & the Dukes of Art off the new album yet to be released, Show Me What Love Is.
Abi Clark: There's so many different beautiful touch points and I'm so grateful that you shared it with our audience today, the KUVO fam! And you're going to be on stage at Dazzle celebrating this album release in May. Is it on the date that it-
Chantil Dukart: May 1st, yeah. It's dropping that morning and then the show’s that night. So I'm going hard on the May Day, May Day!
Abi Clark: I love that. And the band that's going to be with you, are we going to see some of the players that were on the record and some other players?
Chantil Dukart: It's actually going to be a different group of people. So, I've got Will Gaines on the bass, Khalil Brown on the drums, and then my buddy Jesse Shantor on the saxophone, who you might recognize. He tours with Banshee Tree a lot. That's Michelle's band. So yeah, it's a great group of people. They're all buddies and good friends of mine. And I'm grateful that we have a music scene where like so many people are in like five or six bands. So, it's like, you gotta have six bass players, six drummers, like especially as a jazz musician full-time working, you gotta have a roster. So I got that roster!
Abi Clark: You do, you do! And like I said earlier, you have so many different influences. So I feel like you're part of different beautiful music pockets here in Denver, jazz and beyond.
Chantil Dukart: Yeah, I'm really excited. Actually, I'm going to be down at Tico Time (Bluegrass Festival) playing with Liver Down the River, which is a bluegrass Americana band that I get to play with. And I actually have written a bunch of Americana bluegrass tunes. One of them, I'm going to get to perform with them down there. And we had a rehearsal like a month ago. And it was so much fun to play with the bluegrass band. I was like cheesing the whole time. I was like, this is so much fun!
Abi Clark: Yo!! I've said it before on The Morning Set, like jam and bluegrass and jazz- they're all improvisational!
Chantil Dukart: Totally! I actually think our scene in Colorado would be a lot more healthy if people from the jam band, bluegrass scene, and the jazz scene all connected, because we all need things from those different scenes. Jam bands obviously have a very, very dedicated following. And I would love to see some of those folks get excited about jazz musicians and these crossover artists - myself included. And it would be cool to just see those scenes grow. Like, the jam bands seem to have more complex harmony access points. And it would just be so cool! That's my dream is like all those three scenes converging.
Abi Clark: That would be so sick. I know we do have some folks who are like jam heads that love jazz and listen to KUVO and vice versa. So, I want to see it y'all, 2026 - let's get in each other's jam circles! Well, that's awesome, Chantil. This has been so fun to dig into the new record, out May 1st, Chantil & the Dukes of Art. And the best way for people to stay connected with you is how?
Chantil Dukart: Find me online at chantilmusic.com. I'm on all the socials, you know how it is. So yeah, Chantil Music on Instagram or Chantil Dukart on Facebook.
Photo credit: Will Ornberg, Radio Multimedia Producer
Stay connected to KUVO’s programs and our community! Sign up for the Oasis E-News today!
